The premise of this journal club is to discuss articles and blog posts about Diversity in STEM and academia. We post the paper/topic the 2nd week of the month, and discuss the third Friday of every month at 2pm EST, under #DiversityJC on Twitter. Hope to see you there!

An important point to add is that the professor has received millions of dollars in federal grants and currently holds three R01s! Really? Is it all about the money now? In these times of scarce funds for research, of course being funded makes a huge difference when a professor is being hired. But that’s not all that matters! (Or at least, it shouldn’t be, right?). Alright, on top of doing great research and being able to get his research funded, it seems that the professor was also an amazing teacher.

So now it seems obvious that hiring the professor despite the allegations against him was a terrible mistake, but how do we measure the success of aspiring professors? By numbers. The number of publications, the number of grants funded, the number of classes taught. Numbers, numbers, numbers – they are all in our CV’s. But what about the non-quantitative requirements. How to know that the person is a decent human being and not an assh**e? Being a professor and a PI means interacting in an influential way with students, postdocs, technicians and other professors. Being able to mentor properly is super important, and it’s also a big responsibility. How do we know that a person with such amazing credentials and incredible record of publications and grants is going to be a good professor and mentor?

We want to discuss those topics and hear what you have to say! Join us in our next #DiversityJC on February 19th 2pm EST.

Thanks to all who’ve filled out our survey, we’re leaving it open for awhile longer so you can still give us feedback.

We’re back after a brief hiatus! On August 24 at 2pm, we’ll talk about effective communication strategies for helping improve diversity and highlight whether or not visibility campaigns are sufficient to increase diversity or is there more that is required to achieve a robust state of diversity?

A few weeks ago, #ILookLikeAnEngineer became a trending topic on Twitter. It all started with some disparaging remarks made about software engineer Isis Anchalee, who was featured in a recruiting ad for the company she works for in the bay area.

I doubt that most of you know me. I am a passionate self-taught engineer, extreme introvert, science-nerd, anime-lover, college dropout, hip hop dancer, yoga teacher/hoop-dance teacher, really authentic friend andHUMAN(omg?!). In fact, if you knew me you would probably know that being famous is one of my biggest nightmares; seriously right up there with falling into a porta potty. I keep to myself most of the time and generally prefer when others mind their own business too.

Up to the point where these ads were published, Anchalee was doing her part for diversity in tech just by being an engineer It sounds like she likes her current job well enough and does it well. And though I don’t know her, I imagine she’d have been happy enough to continue working in the tech industry in the Bay Area. Quietly being an engineer.

I didn’t want or ask for any of this attention, but if I can use this to put a spotlight on gender issues in tech I consider that to be at least one win.

After she was inspired to write it due to the reaction to the ad she’s featured in (she’s one of a few of her colleagues photographed, showing off some of the team (I always wondered who people in ads are…and now I know in at least this one case), her challenge to show the diversity present in engineering has really taken off, and underscored the point that scientists and engineers do not look just one way (or even dress one way; the white lab coat is not all that typical in many fields of science, for instance). And just how the current culture fosters unconscious bias:

There is a significant lack of empathy and insight towards recognizing that their “playful/harmless” behavior is responsible for making others inappropriately uncomfortable. This industry’s culture fosters an unconscious lack of sensitivity towards those who do not fit a certain mold.

And what Isis Anchalee is doing with #ILookLikeAnEngineer parallels another story of a quiet person that did a lot to raise awareness of outright bias: Rosa Parks. Rosa Parks was an introvert too. A quiet member of her community, serving as a quiet example, and one community members felt deeply connected to (there doesn’t seem to be any other way w/ us introverts). Until she kick-started the Montgomery, Alabama bus boycott. And suddenly, she was thrust into the spotlight.

Harassment and derogatory remarks/behaviors shouldn’t have to be tolerated by anyone. For whatever reason, Both Parks and Anchalee have stories that resonated beyond their immediate communities. And of course, both had others to help spread and broadcast a similar message, to demonstrate their agreement with them. In some ways, quietly standing in solidarity.

To take one example, women on the traditional academic path are making some progress, though in the upper ranks of academia (Associate & full professor), growth is minimal over the last decade. Visibility campaigns such as Anchalee’s aren’t new, but perhaps they haven’t taken hold or they are not fully sufficient to make real change happen.

A new publication in from the St. Louis Federal Reserve has found that educational attainment and financial stability of traditionally under-represented groups finding that though they can achieve middle class and beyond, it’s a tenuous state and those gains are easily lost, especially during economically challenging times, like recessions, that are hard for them to come back from (NYT story on this report).

And hard funding times may well be at play in the slowness of increasing diversity in STEM fields too. Biases are more entrenched perhaps, and change is slower to come, perhaps due to limited opportunities on the whole. This is one reason increased funding in STEM, if done wisely, could matter a lot.

Which brings us to the discussion questions for this week’s #DiversityJC

Is there such a thing as Quiet advocacy for Diversity? Is just being in the industry and just passively observed, OK?

Does showing STEM workers all look different help improve diversity? Or is it a neutral backdrop to other steps?

What strategies work best for you when talking about diversity? Direct? Quiet?

What situations/scenarios call for quieter activism vs. the louder-speak-up/protest activism?

What are some things that can be done to ensure that education/STEM training lead to resilient & robust careers for underrepresented groups?

Should we indeed be paying attention to the outdated comments like those of Tim Hunt and Ask Alice? Should we just ignore them, wish they would evolve, or wonder how they didn’t know better? Perhaps we should be able to filter out these wrong opinions, given that it is hard to change, and that they do have deep expertise in some areas (Nobel prize = expertise). But…

Indeed. It can be difficult to filter someone, especially if the comments are not all that blatant. Subtle comments like microaggressions can be hard enough to even identify on their own. When it’s someone you respect and admire, subtle comments can be even more difficult to distinguish and weed out. Moreover, it’s not our responsibility to be someone’s filter – for our own sake or for a larger community, no matter how much you and others respect them. We also discussed this initial idea of it being comments of an “older generation” and if we give them a pass as being from a “different time” (my words). Several took issue with this “older generation” stuff – which is totally correct. Age and generation can mean nothing in these cases, and age is relative. We shouldn’t use age as a blanket clause either, basically. The reason I raised this “older” stuff is because I personally have avoided conversations and used this excuse – I wondered if others had as well, and if there was something to the “well that’s an outdated opinion, it’s not very important, look at the backlash, clearly we’ve come far from there, from that time.”

In addition, as Doctor PMS (@Doctor_PMS) pointed out, change can be tough and painful – and may not be worth our ATP. It may actually be problematic for us, especially as early career scientists, let alone draining. Ian (@IHStreet) reminded us you can’t be sure who is willing to change or be open to the discussion at the onset. On the other hand, as Ruthie (@ruthiepbirger) pointed out, initiating the conversation can be a good litmus test for how ingrained the attitude is, and how open the person is to further dialogue. But back to the first hand, Benjamin Carr (@BenjaminHCCarr) said some people are actively resistant to change.

And, yeah, as Luna CM Centifanti (@LunaCentifanti) noted, people in leadership and power positions are often people of privilege. As others agreed, they are also the ones with the most control. Over us, over our careers…

I understand these challenges. I know it’s scary. I still think it’s critical. We have to say something. We can’t allow these comments to go unchallenged – even when we don’t have twitter ready to back us up. Why? Because other people beyond you are listening. Because if they say it to you, they have said it to others. Because those others might be students, early career scientists, just getting their bearings. They may think statements like that are ok, or are hurt and demeaned by them. When we fail to speak up, we allow those statements to enforce especially unconscious biases and stereotypes of some, and allow others to have their self-worth undermined.

In addition, some listening don’t realize these comments, or their larger experiences, are due to bias and stereotypes and are not personal. Without someone speaking up or calling out, these can be internalized.

.@Doctor_PMS Later discovered times hadn’t changed as much as I thought. Some issues just weren’t as obvious in early career. #DiversityJC

So how to go about addressing comments? Moreover, SometimesScienceSux (@SmtimScienceSux) questioned whether correcting someone would really change their mind – which begs the question if you can engage them in further dialogue beyond just the correction. Will they be open to it? Are you be prepared? Perhaps a gentle nudge, as Ian (@IHStreet) suggested, or offering your perspective on the comment, as V. Siva (@DrVidSiva) recommended. Ian (@IHStreet) further noted it’s likely easier if they know you personally, and I agree. I’ve had the most luck with heart-to-heart conversations. In addition, or if you don’t have a personal relationship to draw on, ask people questions, try not to just tell , find out what they think is behind what they’ve said or done. And remember what you learned in elementary school: use “I” statements. Wandering Scientist (@wandsci) also made a great suggestion:

It can be frustrating, especially as we do end up being the ones careful of our words. As Nicole Morgan (@coralnerd) said, for some reason, people can respond really negatively to something as simple and true as “I’m offended by that“, and Ruthie Birger (@ruthiebirger) reminded us about gaslighting and that we’ll like hear “you’re being too sensitive.” So be prepared. We also talked briefly about the need for a safe space to voice our thoughts – but how this isn’t always available. Ruthie Birger (@ruthiebirger) and I agreed that we can actually make spaces safer – when we feel comfortable, we should more apt to speak up about diversity, or share our own (like me being out as bi, even though I present as straight) to make spaces safer for others. Wandering Scientist (@wandsci) also noted that they are often taken more seriously when talking about racism, whereas they feel less comfortable talking about sexism. This likely has to do with when you have the privilege in a situation, so take advantage of that. If you don’t feel like you can speak about a subject, like racism if you’re white, simply ask questions about it – what your institution is doing – and raise other voices up to speak. We can also spend a little more time being introspective, and thinking about advice and feedback we get and how we take it. About how the feedback you’d give to would feel (do unto others…). And we should encourage others to do the same…

We still need support in speaking out. We still need a community to back us. It will always be scary, and you never know the impact or backlash that may come of it – there’s a reason we haven’t made as much progress and we should: paradigms are entrenched (that’s why they’re paradigms), old biases die hard. You never know when someone will take offense. We should think carefully about how we address these issues.

I think perhaps a real key is bringing up diversity well before it is a personal issue. Find out if your institution has a diversity statement, and if not why not. Initiate discussions around diversity, unconscious bias, and microaggressions. Talk to leadership about opening up these dialogues, or even bringing in speakers or doing workshops. You certainly don’t need an incident to start this dialogue – look to the increasing body of literature on this as a problem (some here on this blog), or the many, many incidents in the news these days (oh where to start… #BlackLivesMatter, on campus sexual assault..).

No matter your tactic, start before an incident – even if leadership is iffy, I promise you, there is someone, likely many someones, quietly thanking you for your forward thinking. And just imagine the next generation.

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Last week we discussed this article on how to attract latinas to STEM careers. It was particularly interesting that our discussion happened the day after the Science Career “advice” not to worry about a male advisor looking down at her chest.

Today the ScienceCareers "advice" reminded us the need of good mentors – is this the main way to get more hispanics into STEM? #DiversityJC

Yes. Good mentors, but also ROLE mentors. At the very least, a good mentor can keep someone going in STEM. A good mentor should able to say ‘here is an e.g. of what i want/don’t want’. In the story for today, it seems like the mentor was a fairly serendipitous connection at first. A critical point is that your mentor *does not* have to be advisor and your advisor shouldn’t be only mentor. In fact, have a diversity of mentors, not everyone can mentor you in everything (nor should). Yet we rarely tell anyone this and focus on advisor being only source of mentoring. While having mentor that looks like you is important, others who can tell their struggles and relate can also be helpful.

Not an easy question. By letting them know they think the mentee belongs in STEM (or could if they so choose)? Instilling confidence for career choices? Mentoring is not equal to just advice. It has to involve listening, creating a good environment, & getting them to see doors to success.

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Last week, we took a little diversion from our stated objective of talking diversity in STEM. Doctor PMS and I have been talking and thinking a lot about the next stage in our careers, and about the anxiety and challenge that holds for us. We wanted to see about giving some space to that, especially as community has come up as important in many of our conversations thus far.

Clearly we’re not the only ones struggling with this – as the ensuing conversation (and wrestling that into this recap!) made clear. But we also wanted to hear how others have made it through and reached the other side. We wanted advice, too.

For starters, many of us attempt to figure out what’s next and make ourselves more marketable by taking on extra tasks or responsibilities.

We likely won’t get recognized for the additional work we’re doing to make our resume stand out, to explore other options, to broaden our skills. We are feeling more pressure to do as many additional things as we can, while often operating within a culture that puts a premium on a single type of output.

Part of this was the fact that many of us are in an academic culture that values specific goals (peer-reviewed publications, tenure) and a specific path (PhD, postdoc, tenure-track faculty). In addition, as biochembelle (@biochembelle) mused, maybe we get too focused on certain titles in academia (e.g. “tenure-track professor”) – ones that we don’t see when/if we leave. Moreover, Luna CM Centifanti ‏(@LunaCentifanti), Doctor PMS (@Doctor_PMS) and Jorden Cummings (@jordenc_phd) brought up that we are often under the impression that if you leave academia – don’t expect to come back. This narrative alone can be harmful and create anxiety, as Amelia Jordan (‏@Robot_Insect) noted, as it makes us feel like we can’t even try something else, even if we’re unhappy or academia doesn’t feel like the right fit.

In my experience, leaving academia was never an option. It is considered as a failure and it's tough to do #diversityJC

In fact, many responded that leaving was not always a one-way street. While it may be difficult for some in some fields, you can absolutely return to academia. Further, I argue the narrative that it can’t be done says far more about academic institutional culture than it does about reality – and this culture is not everywhere. For me, my MS and PhD studies were at an institution that was very different in this regard from where I am now. The University of New Hampshire was very applied – graduate students worked very often with collaborators off-campus and outside academia. The faculty represented a range of backgrounds, as did the grad students themselves. Leaving academia was never frowned upon, it was done regularly. And you could return – there are academic institutions that value and welcome non-academic experience.

See, there is more than an academic path out there. Moreover, we shouldn’t be looking into it just because we’re hearing over and over again how there are too few jobs and too many of us. Academia might also be the wrong fit! There may be something else out there we’re better at.

Yet even if you do get past the narrative and make the decision to test the non-academic waters, doing so is a challenge. Ian Street (@IHStreet), Jessica Catrilli (@jess_carilli) and others noted that translating our skills and experiences can be difficult. Jorden Cummings (@jordenc_phd) and V. Siva (@DrVidSiva) added that you don’t always know what jobs to look for. The problem is, as V. Siva continued, there is often little being done to help prepare us for a job beyond academia. Doctor PMS (@Doctor_PMS) followed up that this is why it’s so tough – how do you know what skills you need, if you don’t know entirely where you’re headed? And I’ll add – how do you know even know which direction to go, if you’re never made fully aware of all the options available to you?

Unfortunately, in addition to all of that, we have to face fact that the job market may be no better outside of academia.

We can’t assume that just by leaving we’ll suddenly be at an advantage, even if we do figure out how to translate our skills and experience, how to update our resume. However, I’ve also been told that you can make your academic experience work for you. If you have an advanced degree, this can signal that you are good at multi-tasking, at starting and completing difficult projects and research, that you can handle challenges and solve problems. Basically, as academics, we tend to completely overlook what it means to have gone through rigorous academic training in the first place. We can translate that into marketable skills.

So. What to be done? How do we try out new fields when we have been told so little about them? How do we move in a non-academic direction with little support in doing so?

First. The big bottom line really is the fact that there are other paths. Most of us are just not used to seeing them after having been in academia our entire careers thus far, and interacting with only other academics.

I left after PhD never did a post-doc, never felt like a failure #DiversityJC

What do you enjoy most about your current job? What are you good at? What would you like to learn? What about other positions sound intriguing? If you can design your perfect career, what would it look like? I know these sound kinda silly, but they really are deeply important questions – and don’t limit yourself. Dream big. For example, I’ve been doing a lot of this thinking over the past few months of my postdoc. Yes, I am doing interesting work at a very prestigious lab at a very prestigious university but… I realize I enjoy the connections between research and management far more than theoretical work. I like collaboration – I like connecting people. I am good at running meetings, staying on task, and following up. A career in academia likely isn’t for me – but a job for a non-profit or “boundary group” that connects research and policy, one where I help develop long-term goals and the strategies to get them done? That would be fabulous. I also want a job that pays me to do diversity work – and I want that work explicitly part of long-term goals and strategies.

Maybe that’s a big dream, but it helps me craft what I do now. Who I talk to, what I talk about, even how I frame the papers I’m working on.

To help you think about this, try out new things! Talk to new people! Read stuff! Check out job boards (some of my ideas come from job posts I’m not yet qualified for). You never know what might click.

Another helpful tip: informational interviews – when you interview someone for information, usually about their job and how they got there, as opposed to for a job yourself. These are also a great way to figure out what might fit for you. Look into people writing or doing cool things, look them up online, read about them. If they have a career that sounds intriguing, even if you have no idea how you’d get there… guess what, they might have some insight. Sure, cold-contacting someone is scary, but remember that informational interviews are done widely in other fields (outside academia!) and that people love to talk about themselves!

If you do decide to make a switch, seek out resources that can help you figure out what you need to be successful in that field. Learn what matters in this new career – what skills, experience, and what they value. Start to network, from your informational interviews say. Update your CV/resume – it will not be the same across postings! – and while this will be challenging, it can be done!

But perhaps don’t just go at it haphazardly. As Doctor PMS (@Doctor_PMS) stated, and I agree, make a plan. If I can think through things, the steps I need to take, that makes all the difference in the world. If you don’t know what comes next, or those steps – again, find someone who does! But – keep in mind this plan should be flexible. You never know what’s going to happen next…

In the meantime, remember the importance of taking care of yourself, and of spending time with the people around you. I’ve just added a whole bunch of additional things for you to do – when you’re already pressed for time, stressed, and anxious. This is where your friends and colleagues come in.

@jordenc_phd Community is so important! Seek one from within and without. At conferences, I hung out w PhD stdts fm other labs #DiversityJC

There was a lot of conversation about mental health – and for good reason. Graduate school and our early careers are often highly stressful. We are also likely isolated from friends and family – and even from those around us. I think we often hide our anxieties, feelings of not measuring up, depression, from our lab members and advisor. As the conversation made clear, this is a major, major issue – that we don’t often talk about, and are rarely sure where to go for help.

@LunaCentifanti think I wld have benefitted from being willing to talk about all of it with my family, rather than pretending #DiversityJC

We don’t talk about our struggles very often. We don’t want people to know that we’re having a tough time, or we’re late on that manuscript. We don’t want people to know we’re not sure how to do that analysis, and didn’t understand this paper – yet it can be much more than that. We live in a society that has a tough time with mental illness in all of its forms already – and now we’re in academia where we rely on our brains and competition may mean we don’t want to show any form of “weakness”. This is a systemic problem I’m already getting sidetracked on, so I’ll just say this: having a community you trust, be that one person or many, and talking about issues together in a safe space is key, but hard to come by. Try to find it well before you need it, if you can, and be that space for others. Do not shy away from conversations about mental health – be supportive. If you need help but can’t find it in your lab or advisor, go elsewhere. Even twitter can be a supportive space where you can be anonymous until you’re ready to find people you can trust IRL.

Coming back to our topic, one important aspect of support is having a mentor you trust, someone you can discuss things in a more professional capacity, as being proactive can help ease anxiety. A mentor is also critical for determining your career path and supporting you through it.

I don’t think I can overstate this – the importance of mentoring, either as a mentor working to help your students understand the options available, or as a student looking forward. However. We live under the assumption that you just need the one, and that one is your advisor. This isn’t true. Let me reiterate Alycia Mosely Austin (@AlyciaPhD) by saying you likely need more than your advisor. First, maybe your advisor isn’t very good at mentoring. Find another. Second, one person cannot do all the mentoring things for you. Your advisor may be a great mentor when it comes to your research, but has never left academia. They cannot mentor you as you think about new career options. As Ruth Hufbauer (@hufbauer) pointed out, faculty may not have be able to advise students on career decisions that are new to them, as well.

A good mentor will help you navigate potential avenues available, and can assist with everything from converting your resume to learning the important jargon you’ll need to know (as David Thul pointed out) to network effectively. And this isn’t just for now. You will need to seek out good mentors for various reason throughout your life. This is not something that is given – this takes active work. Learn to do this now.

I know a lot of minority groups feel this way – that what we do as individuals reflects on us as a whole. It’s unfair but reality. To this I say – I’ll echo biochem bell (@biochembelle), Sci Curious (@scicurious), and Alycia Mosey Austin (@AlyciaPhD) that we can lead in demonstrating all of the things we can do in our fields, the range of experiences and opportunities out there. There are many ways to be an inspiration!

So. An attempt to sum up: Think about what it is you want to do, and what you’re good at. What makes you tick, what will be fulfilling – but then take steps to make that a reality. Realize you can try something new – but you will have to work at it and seek help. Be proactive – talk with other people about their paths, about other options, network, attend seminars outside your focus, try out an informational interview or two. Plan ahead – but allow plans to be fluid! And, bottom line, pay attention to you in other ways too: watch you stress and anxiety levels, know you can and should talk about mental health – yours and others. Take time when you need it, don’t be afraid to support yourself too!

There is hope!

But on a happy note, I didn't give up and now have a wonderful job! It can happen! 🙂 #DiversityJC